Panasonic has announced the reopening of its “giga factory” in Pilsen, the Czech Republic, which will be able to produce 1.4 million propane (R290) residential and commercial heat pumps for the European market by 2030.
The company said it spent €320 million ($373.8 million) expanding and refurbishing the facility, with the investment increasing production by 250% and the total floor space to 140,000m2 (1,506,947ft2), with 102,000m2 (1,097,918ft2) of that being new space. With the investment, Panasonic said it has moved both production and R&D of heat pumps from Southeast Asia to Europe.
“The factory in Pilsen is set to become Panasonic’s central hub for heat pump production and supply in Europe,” Radek Vach, Business Planning Director at Panasonic HVAC CZ, in a statement. “By placing further R&D capabilities and production together on the same site, we’ll be able to ensure that the factory is able to rapidly and nimbly anticipate and respond to the evolving needs of this key market.”
Pumping up production: The goal of 1.4 million indoor and outdoor heat pumps produced annually by 2030 includes both commercial and residential units.
- Panasonic’s Aquarea line of residential and commercial heat pumps use propane as a refrigerant. The Aquarea residential line consists of six models offering between 3 and 16kW (0.85 to 4.55TR) of heating capacity, while the three commercial models provide heating capacities of 20, 25 and 30kW (5.7, 7.1 and 8.5TR) and are designed for multi-family homes and light commercial applications.
- In February 2024, Panasonic announced the ECOi-W AQUA-G BLUE, a range of reversible R290 heat pumps designed for large commercial, industrial and multi-dwelling residential applications. The four models offer heating capacities of 49.2–83.6kW (14–23.7TR) and cooling capacities of 48.2–74.1kW (13.7–21.1TR).
- The newly expanded factory will be able to produce a maximum of 700,000 outdoor R290 heat pumps.
An expanding European presence: Panasonic acquired Area Cooling Solutions in July 2024, and with it the company gained a production facility for CO2 (R744) condensing units in Poland.
- Panasonic currently offers 4HP, 10HP and 20HP condensing units for the European market. As of October 2024, the company said it had installed between 10 and 20 of its 20HP CO2 condensing units in Europe and that “strong interest” was being shown in the model.
Quotable: “We’re seeing a marked uptick in interest in heat pumps in the European market, and we are anticipating this to be reflected in demand in the next few years,” said Toshikatsu Fukunaga, CEO of Panasonic HVAC Europe, in a statement. “Our investment into the Pilsen factory demonstrates both our confidence in the growth of the market and our ability to anticipate and meet future demand.”
